Dunhuang Travel Notes | Mingsha Mountain Crescent Spring in the Desert

As one of the largest countries with vast territory, we occupy diverse terrain and varied landscapes. From deep forests and snowfields, glacial mountains to tropical jungles and humid islands. We are lucky enough to be able to experience different scenery without having to fly very far. Moreover, there is no need to go through the troublesome procedures of visa.

Deserts account for about 13% of my country's land area, most of which are concentrated in Xinjiang and Inner Mongolia. They are boundless yellow sand, undulating sand dunes, and the edge lines of each bulging hill are smooth, graceful, and smooth. When taking aerial photography, you can feel the boundless vastness as far as the eye can see, the sky is high and the clouds are clear, and your heart is full of comfort. But if you walk there, even if a camel is assigned to accompany you, there will be no grass growing and no water in the area for hundreds of miles, and you will only see desolation and endless despair.

 

There is a desert in my primary school textbook that I still remember vividly. The teacher described it vividly on the podium, saying that the desert has spring water that will not dry up. Its shape is like a crescent moon, and it brings hope to people passing by, because in the In the long desert, water is hope. With water, plants can grow. People drink freely when the rain comes after a long drought, resting both their bodies and their exhausted souls after a long journey.

It seems that the road full of despair has become a little different, because of the clear spring and the reeds beside the spring, maybe because it caused ripples in my heart.

 

▲Crescent Moon Spring in different seasons

According to literature, when the water level of Crescent Spring is at its highest, the water area reaches 22.5 acres and the water depth reaches 9 meters. However, in the mid-1970s, the local implementation of land reclamation and pumping for irrigation led to the destruction of surrounding vegetation and soil erosion. Dunhuang's groundwater level dropped sharply, almost causing the Crescent Spring to disappear.

 

Because the bottom of Crescent Moon Spring is sandy and the water source mainly comes from groundwater, the government's emergency rescue and recharge into the surrounding rivers allowed this unique scenery to be preserved.

 

I was lucky enough to go there in 2014 and see the beautiful sunset in the desert.

At 3 o'clock in the afternoon, the scorching sun was shining brightly as we entered the scenic spot. We climbed up from the long and sloping sand ridge. When we approached the top, we turned and the Crescent Moon Spring appeared in our field of vision little by little.

 

At sunset, the wind became cooler and mixed with fine sand. The girls covered themselves with gauze to protect themselves, but the children did find their childhood happiness here. The giant sandpit was undoubtedly exciting, so the grown-up children, We also screamed and ran, swooping down from the top of the mountain, rushing towards the pool of clear water surrounded by sand dunes. The screaming was not only because of the stimulation of speed and wind, but also because at that moment we could release the pressure on our bodies and become childhood in a blink of an eye. time myself.

 

 

Reeds taller than a person grow neatly beside the Crescent Moon Spring, and they are reflected in the lake, swaying gracefully. Some flower beds were also built by hand next to it. The strange thing is that the flower beds only have soil brought by hand, and there is not a grain of sand in them.

 

The guide said that no matter how much sand is washed down during the day, as long as there is a night of wind, the dune can be restored to its original appearance overnight. The sand has returned to the top of the dunes, and the flowerbeds are clean.

Visitors who come the next day will see the same height of sand dunes as yesterday, the same clear Crescent Moon Spring, and the same sand-free flower beds. The magic wand waved by nature always daunts us little humans.

 

The recharge of groundwater and protection from strong winds are one of the secrets of Crescent Moon Spring that has not disappeared over the years .

 

Sanmao said. Every time I miss it, a grain of sand falls from the sky, so there is the Sahara.

The Crescent Moon Spring is probably a drop of tear left by Dunhuang Feitian when he left the sandbank. Even if you look at it from the sky, the stars in the sky are reflected in the watery light. Every time it twinkles, it's like someone is calling you to go home.